For those of us old enough to remember back to the hard rock/metal days of the 80′s, you know, bands like Skid Row, Cinderella, Bullet Boys, Ratt, and dare I admit Bon Jovi (but, only the Slippery When Wet album). Do you miss those days of sitting in a friends garage cranking some hard rock and metal to drown everybody else out? Or maybe you miss rocking out in your Trans-Am, while wearing sunglasses and cranking your stereo to show off for the ladies. Well, that’s where Taking Dawn comes in to take you back to those days. Taking Dawn is a band out of Las Vegas, and Time to Burn is their upcoming debut album. So, the question is, is will this album rock hard enough to fit the modern sound of hard rock, or fizzle out like most of the cheesy 80′s bands did.

It absolutely rocks, and hard! Time to Burn is a hard-rockin’ album, and yet it’s very reminiscent of the heavy bands I used to listen to when I was in my youth. Taking Dawn bring with them a sound that is a nice breath of fresh air to today’s hard rock scene. Listening to this album takes me back to when I was new to hard rock and metal, but with a modern feel to it.

Let’s get into the album a bit. The title track starts the album off with a bang. “Time to Burn” instantly sets the tone for the album. Big, heavy songs and even a bit of an anthem sound. And, who doesn’t like all-band vocals? It pumps the whole song up when the whole band is yelling the same lyrics. This first song gets right in your head, and you’ll soon find yourself singing along with several parts of the song, and that continues on throughout the rest of the album. Be prepared to be singing along with the whole cd while cruising around town.

“Like a Revolution” is the next song on the album, and it’s great! Again, very anthemic, with all band vocals, but that’s what the music on this cd is all about. Basically, by the end of this second track, I was absolutely hooked in for the rest of the album, and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Giant, heavy guitar riffs and screaming, solo runs really exemplifies the skilled guitar work throughout the entire album. Every aspect of every song just fits perfectly. The drums are spot on, along with the guitar and vocals. The production on the album is nothing short of perfect, either.

“So Loud” is a great song for this album, because it really is a cd that deserves to be played loud. It would make a great soundtrack to a party in someone’s backyard in the summertime. “Rock Fighter” is another great song. This track is kind of even empowering to listen to. You’ll feel like going out and taking over the world with the power of rock and roll in your soul.

Time to Burn finishes off with a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s, “The Chain.” When I first saw that song title, I was not sure if I wanted it to be a cover or an original song with the same name. After listening to it, though, I thought it was great. One of the best covers I’ve ever heard, quite honestly. The song is the same, but with a hard rock feel to it. It’s a great cover song!

So, there you have it. I’ve touched on only a few of the songs on Time to Burn, but I would really encourage you to listen to this entire album, and I’m pretty confident that you’ll enjoy the ride. I can only hope that Taking Dawn can revive this kind of sound for years to come. It’s got a modernized retro feel to it, and it makes for an extremely fun listening experience. Usually the music I listen to is extremely aggressive, but this is a nice vacation from that type of music. It may not be the most aggressive, but it does rock really hard, and is, for a lack of better words, bad-ass! Throw this cd in your car stereo, roll your windows down, and turn the volume way up.

4.0/5